


Callidus Astutia (A Study of Magic: Harmony, Betrayal & Things In Between)

by jiwrites



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Magic, Enemies to Lovers, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-09
Updated: 2020-06-09
Packaged: 2021-03-04 00:55:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,195
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24574927
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jiwrites/pseuds/jiwrites
Summary: Callidus Astutia is a book that hold all sorts of fables, allegories, myths and legends that are used to teach Magickfolk lessons from a very young age all the way through to adulthood. Penned by Merlin, the Aesop of the Magickus realm, the title directly translates to cunning craft and is highly regarded as a holy book among Magickfolk.Inside there is a story told of two young men, one of which is a deceiver by nature, who are to duel each other to their last breaths, unless they can change their views. Deception plays a role, as it always does in magic, but it is less than obvious. For, what these two are deceiving, are themselves.Excerpt from  Callidus Astutia: Infixus FatumThis is a kind of magicThere can only be oneThis rage that lasts a thousand yearsWill soon be gone
Relationships: Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun/Suh Youngho | Johnny, Kim Dongyoung | Doyoung/Lee Taeyong
Comments: 1
Kudos: 19





	Callidus Astutia (A Study of Magic: Harmony, Betrayal & Things In Between)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MusicisMight](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MusicisMight/gifts).



> Summer/@TYsNeverending - Donation to FIERCE NYC
> 
> Requested a 3k Dotae enemies to lovers slowburn magic fic that takes place in a magic realm.
> 
> I tried my best but this is less slow burn and more of a cliffhanger.
> 
> Also the last text in the summary are lyrics of a Queen song.

It was the usual back and forth between Taeyong and Doyoung, a battle of the wills and stepping on feet. It had been this way since anyone could really remember, what with Dyoung beating Taeyong out for the top spot in the academy every single time, by a sliver of a point at the last possible second.

“You will _never_ be good enough, so just give it up!” Doyoung shouts, smirking at the boy across the classroom from him. “Just accept it!” He slams his foot down, a gush of air propelling towards Taeyong to send him back into the cemented wall with a thud. The cheers erupt as usual as Doyoung stands proudly, having won yet another battle.

“Alright, alright. Settle down class.” Professor Thelm hushes the students as they step into the center of the battle area. “Congratulations and well done, both of you. Now, please take your seats to examine what it is you could both work on.”

Doyoung rolls his eyes as he sits between Haechan and Taeil, watching as Taeyong drags himself back to his seat next to Jungwoo and Yuta, both of whom look at him with supportive, yet sad, smiles.

“Pity,” Taeil hums, holding a tiny funnel cloud in the palm of his hand to keep Haechan amused by making it bigger and smaller. “He really could be something if he would just apply himself.”

“You know he won’t. He has no idea what he can actually do,” Doyoung shakes his head, “Besides, it’s not like Captain Melodrama and the secret service agent are gonna help him. If anything, they’re his hindrance and he has yet to see that.”

“Or perhaps he has seen it and just refuses to accept it?” Taeil offers.

“Although you can make it sound like a gust, when it comes in quick succession, I can tell the lot of you are talking,” Professor Thelm lowers her glasses and stares hard at the friends speaking to each other.

“Sorry, ma’am,” Taeil smiles, “Won’t happen again, though it is a rather blustery day, professor.” He smirks.

“Yes, I can tell by the way the crosswind has irreparably damaged your hairstyle today, Mr. Moon,” she retorts as she shoves her glasses back into place and reiterates every part of the duel in exhausting detail.

Johnny leans up from the row behind them, arm slipping a bit from where it curls around Jaehyun’s shoulders, “Uh-oh, somebody got in trouble.”

“Trouble is a relative term,” Doyoung chuckles, “I prefer to think of it as habitual reprimanding to incite a change of one’s behaviour.”

“Does it ever get tiring? Holding up that big head of yours?” Johnny mockingly grins.

“Johnny, dearest, that is something you will never have to worry about,” Doyoung smiles back, syrupy sweet.

Johnny snorts and sits back, Jaehyun leaning back against, feet up on an empty chair next to them as Professor Thelm speaks a syllable a minute. Sure, the professor was quick-witted and wise, but she was also getting older and things were taking her a lot longer than they used to.

Finally, the class is dismissed and the first ones out are the spunky little newbies, shooting fire balls at each other’s feet and setting off loud explosions that produced a few glittering rays of coloured heat. Fireworks, Doyoung thinks.

They wait until the hotheads clear out and then excuse themselves as a group, staring down the others as they leave, a wind rippling the hems of their robes to create an effect that invoked fear in the hearts of other students.

Or so they liked to believe.

“Ooh, a slight breeze,” Yuta whispers to Taeyong, rolling his eyes, “I’m more scared when Jeno decides to start jumping around in the dorms on the third floor. Whole building could collapse if he moved the wrong way.”

“Well thankfully our Kun has taken him under his wing,” Taeyong chuckles, “Besides, they know they have to look scary in order to garner respect, as they are the weakest of us all.”

“You’re...kidding, right?” Jungwoo laughs, “We’re the weakest! He threw you across a room and you can barely push a ball of water at him! You know their powers far exceed our own.”

Taeyong sighs, “Yeah, I guess. But if we harness it and actually build on our skills instead of resting on our laurels, maybe we could be up to their level.”

“No one is up to their level,” Yuta says softly, “Just let it go, Ty. Doyoung is not going to let you win. Not even once. He’s made that abundantly clear.

“Yeah...I know.” Taeyong sighs as they walk towards the field that covers the expanse of the western side of the property that their school sits on. “It just isn’t fair that they push us around because they feel like we can’t do anything about it.”

“But we can’t. Not really.” Jungwoo says softly, seeing Winwin and Ten just up ahead, “Maybe it’s best we just leave it alone for now?”

“Yeah...yeah, sure.” Taeyong nods, steps faltering, “I need to go grab some stuff for a project...I’ll see you guys later,” his voice sounds like his mind is somewhere else entirely as he takes off.

“But we don’t have a project,” Winwin says, tilting his head as the other two sit down at the small table.

“Not us regular students, but overachievers like Taeyong,” Ten chuckles, “always do.”

“He’s right,” Yuta smirks as he sits, looking into a small bowl of water on the table, “And what is going on here?”

“He’s trying to create something,” Winwin shrugs, “But I have a feeling we need someone else to actually accomplish it. Like Kun or even Taeil.” He shrugs. “But, his pride is refusing to let him attempt to go to one of them.”

Ten scowls, “I can make it happen. I don’t need a shift in the plates or a cloud. I can make it happen myself.”

“Sure you can. Anyone up for a game of Tartarus?” Yuta asks, pulling out his deck, Jungwoo and Winwin turning to join, Ten focusing on his bowl of water with small waves crashing about it.

Meanwhile, Taeyong was sprinting up to the library, brushing passed other students and personnel, trying not to trip on his robes. Something Yuta had said about them being the weakest had triggered a memory in his mind of an old book. He pushes open the double doors of the student lounge and walks in briskly, passing tables of his classmates, ignoring them but making notes in case he needed them.

At a rounded study table, Lucas, Hendery, Yangyang and Jisung were deep in a game of Sternhalma. So far, Hendery and Yangyang were neck and neck, Jisung was struggling to jump to his triangle and Lucas was only a few pegs away from what was surely not his first victory of the day as he used his finger to bounce a peg over the other pieces.

Seated across from each other in a booth, off to the side, Mark and Xiaojun are in a very heated game of GO, that from the looks of it, is a neck and neck duel between the pair, not that Taeyong even knew how to play the game. He’s sure Xiaojun will win, as he’s a rather strategic boy, but also one who knows how to cheat well, even at a game that nobody quite understood.

Renjun, Jaemin and Chenle are engaged in a rather quiet game of Mahjong, clicking tiles and hushed sighs, the only sounds that can be heard from their table. Taeyong finds it uncharacteristic until Renjun flips the board over, sending tiles scattering across the carpet as Chenle and Jaemin laugh at their friend who, apparently, is a very sore loser. Luckily they were tucked away in a corner and not really bothering those around them.

Kun was sitting with Jeno, deep in a game of chess and Taeyong can’t tell who's winning, but he’s sure from the smirk on Kun’s face, that he just might be the victor. Though, of course, it comes crashing down Jeno proudly announces something about checkmate and, Taeyong assumes, wins the game. He watches as Kun begrudgingly picks up the black king and squeezes it before handing it back, now a crystallized form of what it was before.

Getting to the end of the large, rounded room, he enters through older, ornate wooden double doors and walks in, the smell of moldy paper and aged ink hitting him. He heads to the older edition books, knowing he’d recognize the cover when he saw it, tracing his fingers along the spines as he squints. He groans, realizing it’s just too dark and walks out to the table with the large game board, “Hey, uh, can I borrow one of you for a second?”

“What do you need, Ty?”

“I need one of you to light up some books for me?”

Xiaojun smiles, “No problem,” he hops up, “Lead me to these books.”

“Thank you,” Taeyong smiles and walks back through the library entrance, showing him back to the shelves he was at, “It’s so poorly lit back here.”

“Yeah, but no problem,” he snaps his fingers, a delicate flame hovering between his index finger and thumb, holding it up so Taeyong can read. “What ya looking for?”

“A few things for a research project on the Plasmators,” Taeyong says nonchalantly, pulling out one of the books and then another, trying to spark any memory he had.

“The Plasmators? Really?” Xiaojun asks curiously, “Why would the Elders interest anyone anymore? We’ve learned all we can about them.”

“I don’t know,” Taeyong shrugs, “You know teachers.” He pulls down another book and feels his pulse quicken, “Found it. Thanks, Xiao!” He smiles.

“No worries. There’s a free computer desk over there, I’ll go light the lamp for ya,” he walks out of the shelves and towards a more secluded part of the library, lighting the little lamp for him, “Don’t study too hard. You’ll go mad,” Xiaojun chuckles and blows out his fingers, heading back to his buddy and rather challenging game.

Taeyong places the books down and pulls over the one he recognized, brushing some dust off the leather bound mass and opening it carefully. The front page was old and worn, soft to the touch and wrinkled, old calligraphy in the center that read; ‘Historia Magick.’

“This is it,” Taeyong breathes and flips through, drawings of their ancestors, details of wars long since passed, passages of the greats and the fallen and the damned. But Taeyong was looking for one section in particular. He pauses when he comes across it, near the end of the book, a section labeled, ‘Plasmator: Qui Portabant Eseencia’. 

He scans the page, mumbling the words to himself, taking them in as Latin and spewing them out as English, a trait they all had, as most texts were in Latin and were not to be needlessly translated and distributed. He scribbles down a few things on a notepad on the desk, blinking as he turns the page and runs his hand over a drawing of a cupped hand, cradling a blue-white orb, rays emitting from it. “Pura vim vatae,” he whispers to himself and scribbles it down.

He’s about to put the book away when he notices a few more pages behind this section and tilts his head, “But that covers us all…” He turns the page, eyebrows furrowed, “Qui Portabant Quatuor Elementis?” He reads further, eyes widening, “No way…” He grabs the notepad and jots down a few things rather aggressively.

He shuts the book and takes off to go find Yuta and Jungwoo, to tell them he was right. That there were beings far more powerful than they ever imagined.

A head pops out from behind a shelf, eyes squinting at the desk as they listen for the doors to close. The figure moves out from the shelves and forwards, revealing himself as Johnny Suh as he walks over to look at the books left behind and hums, “There you go. You finally figured it out, kid.” Johnny chuckles. “Now, you just need to harness it.

In the hallway, Taeyong was racing downstairs, not realizing just how long he’d been in the library, seeing as though it was now night and he should’ve been in bed ages ago. Deciding not to wake his friends, he heads towards the altar near the back of the school building.

“Taeyong!” Doyoung’s voice rings out, clear as a bell, from behind him and he stills. “Wait up! I need to talk to you!”

Taeyong turns to face him, “What do you want?”

“To know that you are now aware of your potential.” Doyoung says as he walks up, “That you know that there is more to you.”

“What are you talking about? What is this?” Taeyong frowns and steps back, eyeing him closely.

“You found it. The book. Your fate.” Doyoung presses.

“My fate? Why the hell are you talking like that?”

“You haven’t figured it out yet? Why we’re doing this? Why we constantly fight?” Doyoung asks, stepping closer, voice almost pleading.

“Because you think you’re better than me,” Taeyong spits out at him.

“No! Merlin, you’re so dense! I wanted to make you better, but you won’t keep trying. You won’t push yourself.” Doyoung raises his voice.

“I do push my-”

“No you don’t. You constantly sit and cry about how you hate me and how I never let you win. You never try. And I am tired of trying to help you if you don’t want it. So, this ends here and now,” Doyoung shakes his head and creates a cloud around his hand.

“Because you’re too good! I can’t win!” Taeyong shakes his head, hands trembling at his sides.

“THEN MAKE ME LOSE! SHOW ME YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES!” Doyoung bellows, raising his hand to strike.

“Are you insane?! We can’t duel with no one present!” Taeyong shrieks, ducking behind the altar.

“Why not?!” Doyoung growls, wind now whipping around them furiously, whistling and chilly, biting at them.

“It’s not safe!” Taeyong yells back.

“No. It’s not. But this is the life we are destined to lead. Me and you. Either I kill you and we die out or you learn your true potential and you kill me and we live on!”

“You’re nuts!” He gasps as Doyoung appears in front of him, pulling him out from his hiding space.

“No, you’re just weak! You’re going to let us all die because you can’t win one stupid battle against me!” Doyoung shoves him.

“How would I win?! Water never beats air!”

“Use your true powers!”

“What are you talking about?! My true powers are water based! I’ll never win!”

“You’re not limited! You have potential! Just like your father before you and his before him and so on. We have done this for years. But my family always wins. This is the last chance we get. And that means, _you_ are the last chance for the realm. Now, either tap into it or I will make you.” Doyoung snarls, blasting his back with a powerful gust.

“Stop it!” Taeyong sobs, shooting a stream at him, more powerful than usual, “Get away from me!”

“That’s it!” Doyoung laughs as it begins to pour all around them, “Get mad, Taeyong! Think about your weak bloodline and get angry that they left you, a pathetic weakling to do their jobs!”

“Shut up!” Taeyong growls, sending a wave at him, sending his opponent to the floor.

“Your father’s last words? Want to know them?” Doyoung splutters from the water, grinning like a madman.

“Don’t talk about my father! He was a hero!” Taeyong shouts, thunder clapping in the distance.

“He was weak! My father had him up in the air and he called out for his father! Like a baby!” Doyoung shouts as lightning breaks through the sky, hitting one of the forest trees, lighting it up in seconds, a blaze ripping through.

“My father was strong! He was scared to die! Everyone is scared to die!” Taeyong whimpers.

“No! I was never afraid to die! And neither were the generations before me! We are willing to die for the greater good, but you lot are never willing to kill us!”

“Because it’s wrong!” Taeyong screams, the ground shaking beneath them, now being pelted with hail, the size of gumballs.

“It’s for a just cause!” Doyoung shakes his head, “Don’t you see it, yet?!” He laughs, “Look around! This is all your doing! You are destroying everything around you!”

“No, I’m not! I can’t!”

“Yes, you can!” Doyoung moves to get face to face with him, noses almost brushing, hair sticking to their foreheads, “You are creating this! You are continuing our legacy! Centuries of war and destruction! Bloodshed and lives ruined! Our families are meant to change it!”

“Why?! Why us?! Can you explain this to me at all?!” Taeyong sobs, staring into Doyoung’s eyes.

“Because it was foretold long ago! We are meant to meet, meant to duel, meant to kill one another until we find the right way to bring about the preservation of our species!”

“You aren’t making any sense! How could you know that?!”

“Because my father told me before he killed yours! Told me of the prophecy! It’s you, Taeyong, it has always been you! Your fate!”

“Shut up! You don’t know anything about me or my father! Or my family for that matter! You have pushed me around since day one!” He shoves his chest hard to send him flying back. “You don’t get to decide one day that we need to kill each other! We are not the characters in a fable! We are not meant to do this!”

“Yes we are! You’ve heard the tale, I know you have! Infixus Fatum! Fixed Fates! Why do you think I hated you?! You were always nice!”

“You can’t blame this on a story, Doyoung! You can’t believe that we are destined to meet and fight to the death!”

“But we are! So kill me!” Doyoung looks up from where he’s strewn on the floor.

“No!” Taeyong shakes his head, sobbing brokenly.

“Taeyong!” A small spark zaps from Taeyong’s fingertips.

“No!” A tree falls in the distance with a loud snap.

“Do it!” A small crowd has gathered and teachers are now rushing towards them.

“NO!” Taeyong screams, a ball of light emitting from his hand and encircling his body as it travels out in blinding rings all around them.

When it’s over, the weather has calmed and the trees are restored, Taeyong hovering a very limp Doyoung on the wet grass. “No,” Taeyong breathes, “No, no, no. I didn’t touch you! I didn’t kill you!” He trembles, tears still falling when he hears Dyoung take in a sharp breath.

“You did it,” Doyoung breathes out, chuckling, looking up at him.

“What?” Taeyong whispers, eyes searching the other’s face.

Doyoung grabs Taeyong’s wrist and holds it up so they can see his hand, fingertips still sparking blue and white. He smirks, “Fireworks.”


End file.
